St. Cloud man faces 5 charges in assault of woman, teen girl

ST. CLOUD — A St. Cloud man is facing five counts of domestic assault on suspicion of attacking a woman and a teenage girl Tuesday.

According to a Benton County criminal complaint, Timothy Wade Lighthall, 36, choked the girl and, on another occasion, threatened to light the woman on fire.

At about 7:05 a.m. Tuesday, St. Cloud police responded to a possible domestic assault in a home in the 500 block of U.S. Highway 10 South.

When police met the woman, the complaint said, she was "crying and upset" and said there was an argument between her, the girl and Lighthall .

During the argument, the complaint said, Lighthall became angry after she called him a name, "charged" the girl and shoved her against a car, "placing his hands around her throat... and was attempting to choke (her)." Lighthall also hit the girl in the head with a plastic water bottle.

According to the complaint, when the woman intervened Lighthall "shoved her up against the side of a trailer with two hands."

The woman also told police about a Sept. 15 incident in which an upset Lighthall first poured bubble bath all over her and then lighter fluid, the complaint said. He reportedly tried to light the woman on fire with a lighter, but could not get it to work.

According to the complaint, Lighthall threatened to kill the woman and burn down the house.

Lighthall is charged with one felony count of domestic assault by strangulation with a maximum sentence of three years imprisonment and a $5,000 fine. He also faces four misdemeanor counts of domestic assault, each with a maximum sentence of 90 days imprisonment and a $1,000 fine.